#cubewrites

[shame-cubed]

the fantassy au pile

I started this forever ago but haven’t made any progress in a long time. I’m trying to focus on Invitations, so, I’m projectile vomiting all my other ideas up here in an attempt to get them out of my head. I don’t know if it’s working. 

---

It's blacker than midnight in the thickness of forests, and comfortably silent, like footsteps on moss—until it's not.

"Once upon a time," Speaks a warbling voice, airy but grizzled with age, it boldly echoes from a loft unseen; then halts abruptly. 

"Oh, you know how it goes... Let's just cut to chase, now, shall we? I’m not getting any younger." The words seem to ring, punctuated with a croaking laugh that fades with the dark, all but banished by the flick of a switch just as invisible. 

Beaming spotlights glare from above and behind, settling upon weighty velvet curtains charmingly spring-like in colour. A cascading pair of blossoming pink and eggshell blue, upheld by tassels that shine, so similar, to the sparks of dust floating within the bright tracks dutifully illuminating those deep-seated wrinkles of fabric. They part like the seas of another tired tale, then ascend in a deliberately slow, undulating wave. This scalloping formation led by embroidered edges of taught, silver ropes; rises in a swell to unveil a stunning diorama of marbled brick, embellished with a labyrinth of vines, adorning a castle far too colossal to be merely a prop.

The mirage-like structure wavers and gleams, its pearly stonework reflecting the lights at a blinding intensity. Catching its sheen, the drifting filaments glitter akin to a powder snow; multiply, accumulate, and replace the fleeing shadows with a blizzard that stings the eyes. An avalanche of white soon packs every corner, amounting in heaps so infinitely immense and so overwhelmingly bleached, that it hurts. 

---

“Get back here yah dirty lil’ miscreant!” An ireful yell bellows overhead, followed by the hurried thudding of mud-caked boots barely held together by faded strips of leather. Their unkempt owner dips beneath the cloth-draped counter of a flimsy marketplace stall, slides along the dusty cobblestones, rolls into a crawl, then breaks into a long-legged sprint as he shoves through the clamorous mob of meandering bourgeois claiming their daily bread. 

“Someone stop that wretched lad!! The gangly imp! That swindling bastard!!” The fiery roar of expletives launched by his pursuer is gradually extinguished by the sheer distance between them. Keeping his pace as he rounds a corner, the boy glances over his shoulder for signs of the shopkeep, then, like whiplash, instantly jerks forward when his body makes sudden impact with a smaller one that he failed to notice ahead. Both parties fly backwards and hit the ground flat on their asses.

This obstacle of a girl, about his age, pushes her thick hair out of her eyes; a coal-black cut of jagged bangs, half-parted to the side, half-pinned back. Icy blue irises thin beneath their lids, not unlike the slight pout of her lips, revealing no emotion other than mild irritation. 

“Watch where yer goin.” Her voice is monotonous, flat as her expression, and rough with a linguistic bite he'd never heard before. Adorned with ink-dyed leathers and angular iconography only recognizable from a tapestry he once saw—evidently, she wasn't of local blood. 

He narrows his eyes back at her, frowns, but says nothing; choosing instead to break the stare-down by searching for the loot he'd dropped in their collision. Someone could still be after him, so he hasn't the time to waste on petty interactions with outsiders. The girl rights herself and peers into her pockets, then joins him in scanning the ground, appearing to have lost something of her own, too. 

A small satchel of coin lies near, and as he picks it up, he palms the weight to be sure none of the meager sum within has left its confines. He stashes it back into his fraying trousers, clambering to his knees as he plucks two bruised apples from the cobblestone that were to be his lunch and dinner. His grimace deepens, as his prime acquisition eludes his vision.

“Ah, there ya are, Morpeko.” 

Wary, the disheveled thief turns his head at the sound of an unfamiliar name spoken by this unfamiliar girl, and his violet eyes blow wide at the sight of a tri-coloured mouse clinging to the pilfered pastry he’d been searching for. 

"This fancy goodie yers?" She says with a hint of disbelief, gingerly lifting both the snack and its vermin passenger from the ground.

“It is, now get your disgusting rat away from my breakfast.”

---

One after the other, the group of squires pass row upon row of marble pillars as they follow Oleana into their King’s immense throne room. 

Bronze statues of elephants tower from each corner, splendidly engraved in a paisley motif, each gripping a gilded rose at the tip of their raised trunks. The metal behemoths point towards a convex roof, its dome intricately painted with the climax of an age-old fairy tale. Swirls of vibrant colour span the ceiling—red and blue brushstrokes establish the fluttering forms of twin princes in flamboyant outfits, sinking their swords deep into the hide of a dual-winged dragon. The villainous creature dwarfs the heroes in comparison; swathed in scales of white-gold, its prismatic eyes set with sizable gemstones that flicker in the candlelight, seeming to scrutinize the soon-to-be knights as they gather below.

---

His head hits stone as her full weight slams into him, eyes screwed shut in a pained wince. Slotted between his gorget and his chin, the cold metal of her blade grazes his throat with every shaky gasp and tentative swallow. She’s so close. There’s nothing between them but shells of armour; pulses racing beneath plates pressed together. Heaving against each other, breath short from their battle, he can feel her warmth bleeding into him. 

Held tight against the wall, steel kissing his neck; Bede decides he’s perfectly fine with dying if it’s by her hand. He resolves to gaze into her eyes like it’s his last chance, his best attempt at a smoldering stare—like in the novels he’s read—completely thrown out the window when her leg wedges itself between his thighs.

Gloria still manages to crack a grin at him despite the situation. ”Giving yourself up to me so easily, now?” Her smile is confident, or it was until a blush takes over her face, seeming to only realize the sort of words she’s speaking several moments after they’ve left her lips. It’s almost charming. 

“Just kill me, already.” Bede groans. Why did she have to resort to psychological torture? Was it not enough to defeat him? He’s pinned in place by her sword, subject to her whim... There's not much he can muster other than to let his eyes wander. He notes the sheen of sweat on her skin and knows quite factually that he isn’t in any better condition.

“You know I don’t want to do that.”

---

it ain’t much but it’s honest werk... maybe one of these days i’ll get my shit together aaaaa

[ben-eats-art]

Fic based on- Something super sweet by Rory Webley!! (An amazing song, go check it out!!)

Tw: blood, death, possession, self harm, knives, hospitals/medical centers (? It’s a room with medical stuff in it!) cursing tw

If I missed anything please let me know!! :)

Hope you enjoy!!

Spoiler of the Plot (?): Henrik finds Jack’s body after Say Goodbye, and he’s basically half dead. He’s still conscious though (somehow) and Henrik drags him to a medical room they have to try to save him. Jack survives, and starts to heal slowly, until Anti possess him to torment Henrik

He’s dragging him across the floor.

God he’s not even thinking straight at this point.

His mind is racing and he feels like he can’t even breathe,

He’s dragging his creator, one of his best friends, across the floor as he’s bleeding out of the throat.

He needs to get him to the medical room, god he never thought he would have to use it like this.

And then suddenly he’s in the room, hauling Jack up to the table, and there is so much blood it makes his face seem even paler then it is, if that’s even possible at this point,

And he’s still conscious.

He can’t even believe it. If he wasn’t bleeding out right under his finger tips he would be grilling him for answers right now.

He’s just staring at him.

“Henrik”

His voice is croaky, and it sounds like he’s choking.

Because he is, choking horribly on his own blood, but Jack doesn’t even pay any attention to that.

As if it’s not important.

He’s staring dead at Schneep, eyes, calm.

He still can’t believe it.

“It’s ok, Henrik.

Just let me die, we've had our time

We'll be alright”

“What the hell are you talking about?! Are you not getting enough oxygen in your tiny ass brain??”

He gives out a choking, bubbling laugh.

He would usually laugh along, but this doesn’t seem like the right time.

Especially since he’s basically tearing his hair out, throwing stuff to the floor to find all the things needed to at least keep Jack alive for a bit longer.

Jack’s laughing becomes a coughing, an even more horrible choking noise then it already was as,

Jacks eyes roll back into his head.

Henrik screams.

It’s been a few weeks now.

Jack is slowly recovering, and he’s even been able to talk a bit

(which still confuses Henrik to all hell,

but he decides to wait till Jack is better, when he can actually handle all the yelling he’s about to do)

The thing that makes him nervous though

Is the fact that he keeps asking weird questions. Things like extreme details about the surgery, the type of blood he used (even though they both have the same blood type) he keeps asking about any type of mistake that could have happened during the operation.

Does he not trust him anymore? Did something happen? Is he angry with him? God what if he decides to get rid of him whatifhehateshimwhatifwhatifwhatif

His door creaks open, and there he is, tears dripping down his face,

his eyes, god his eyes

Even as he was bleeding out on the operating table, he had never seen him looking this scared.

“Somethings wrong Henrik. Somethings wrong somethings wrong” he claws at his throat, breathing deep and hard.

Henrik stands, his chair falling behind him as Jack falls, almost in perfect sync as

His head crashes to the floor.

They talk for hours after, Henrik going over every detail that he can remember from the operation, letting Jack ask questions whenever he needs to. It’s after so long of explaining and talking and just being exhausted in general, that they finally take a break, Jack has calmed down enough to stand and walk over to the kitchen area.

They sit.

Henrik stands, making some tea for them both, trying his best to distract them both at least a little bit.

He turns, mid sentence as he notices

Jack is staring at the knives.

A dead stare, as if he is spacing out.

“Jack? My friend, are you ok?”

He seizes up, a sharp gasp almost forcing its way through his throat, his hands tearing at the bandages, his eyes.

His eyes.

“Jack? JACK?!”

Henrik is there, grabbing at his arm and then

It isn’t Jack

Those aren’t his eyes

It, whatever it is, makes his face split into what would be called a smile if it wasn’t so sinister

“Didn't Frankenstein teach you anything Henrik? You stupid stupid doctor?

Don't revive dead things.”

[shame-cubed]

sorry it’s not bederia / some crimes can never be forgiven

Me: alright brain let's write. we’ve been making good progress on invitations lately, keep it up My brain: gay love triangle now Me: excuse me? My brain: raihan/piers romcom with unrequited raihan/leon titled “the e-boys are fightinggg” Me: what My brain: do not question it Me: 

Raihan’s been pining for Leon for over 10 years now, but the ex-champion still can’t seem to take a hint. Piers regrettably finds himself the unlikely ear for Raihan’s woes. It all starts with a post.

It’s late night in Galar and that leaves only two gym leaders online. Piers hardly sleeps and Raihan needs attention applied directly to the forehead at every hour including the late ones. He makes a post--well, repost.

“4got how much I love this picture of my torkoal <3” Torkoal is facing opposite of the camera, its body obscured, munching on berries out of its trainer’s palm. Front and center is Raihan in nothing but shorts.

Who else is deep in the midnight scroll but Piers, who winces at the latest on his feed. Raihan’s ego is so large that Piers can feel it exploding out of his screen, sending the shards into his sunken eye sockets with impressive precision. An insomnia-induced rage seizes the singer and he begins to furiously roast Raihan in his comments. 

Raihan does not differentiate between negative and positive attention. He revels in the notification numbers ticking upwards no matter the content. And so he responds to Piers in ways that spur the dark-type trainer further on. This eventually lands the two in each other’s DMs and everything spirals out of control from there.

After some heated back-and-forth, Raihan professes to Piers that he wouldn’t be such an attention whore if Leon’s oblivious ass would just Notice Him. Piers doesn’t exactly know what overcomes him, perhaps it’s his brotherly instincts to care for the obviously inept, but he offers to help. Raihan is surprised to say the least, but is more than willing to take Piers’ advice, and eventually, ropes Piers into some zany scheme where wooing Leon becomes a team effort.

Leon’s already married to the thrill of battle. He takes every compliment in stride, their implications rolling off him like raindrops off his snapback. He is impossible to crack and it’s wearing Piers down; he’s never gonna get Raihan off his ass at this rate. Little does he know he couldn’t possibly, at this point. In the short time he’s spent as Piers' partner in romantic crimes, Raihan begins to get a feel of what he really wants. So, he cops it.

Piers becomes increasingly agitated as Raihan suddenly won’t leave him alone. He’s always messaging him for “advice” and scheduling meet-ups to “practice.” Everything’s under the guise of getting with Leon, but soon all of Piers' well-meaning tips get turned back on him and he hasn’t a clue how to react. They’ve been in each other’s company for long enough that Raihan’s figured out what Piers likes, and he abuses this.

Raihan is getting increasingly aggressive in his pursuit, even frequenting Piers’ shows. The singer hates how much it flusters him, grovelling about his situation to Marnie, who notes that if Raihan’s gotten this far into his head, perhaps her brother might actually want into the dragon-tamer’s pants, as well. Piers decides he’s never asking his sister anything ever again. There’s no way he’d fall for that guy of all people. Right?

To put an end to his suffering, Piers just straight up asks Leon to date Raihan. Leon is considerably perplexed, but agrees on one condition: Piers must join them on their date. At first he refuses, for that’s not a date at all anymore, it’s just bros hanging out. Exactly, Leon points out, for he hasn’t had a cold one with the boys in forever. It’d be fun! Leon practically begs Piers to join, mostly because he hasn’t clued in at all that it’s supposed to be a date of the romantic variety. Even when Piers explains it multiple times.

“Fun” is the opposite of how Piers would describe this date. Disastrous, sure. Why did he set this up? What’s wrong with him? Nothing makes sense anymore. He repeatedly slams his head into the table the three are sitting at. Their party-pitcher of Turfield Amber Ale ripples with each thud, disturbing the foam.

Raihan couldn’t be more pleased. He feels sorta like a superstar, (which he hasn’t in a while, what with the newest additions to the League stealing all his thunder) flanked by his oldest and newest crushes. Does he have to pick? Leon’s got this himbo charm and Piers is so fun to tease. Why can’t he have both? Oh, it’s too greedy... But dragons are known for hoarding, and he decides to flirt indiscriminately, that is until Leon tries to do his Charizard pose at the table and smokes Raihan in the jaw with his fist.

It figures that the only thing able to shut Raihan up would be a direct hit to the mouth, Piers thinks. 

[That’s Enough, I tell myself, hands trembling above the keys]

Has this been done before???

I’ve never even read a single raihan/piers fic so I have no idea where this even came from???? ??????? ? tho i’ve always lowkey appreciated their frenemy potential

Anyway. sling me into the sun

[shame-cubed]

Invitations 

[Romance/Comedy/Slow Burn/Live Action Feed of My Descent Into Madness] It was just another tournament, nothing definitive, simply a gathering of powerful trainers testing their skills against each other in preparation for championships to come. Though, Bede would be lying to himself if he said he didn’t enjoy it when it was just the two of them on the pitch.

> Chapter 2  > Chapter 3 > Chapter 4

[shame-cubed]

I really wanna include a house-party scene in Invitations after they get together alright here’s the plan:

-it’s gloria’s birthday. she drinks like a tank. an absolute beast

-her mom has reluctantly agreed to let gloria wreck the house while she stays over at hop’s place. she put her faith in leon & piers, who are going because of their siblings, to be responsible

-leon & piers are not responsible. they cannot control these demons and just. join in

-raihan overhears leon & piers talking about gloria’s party and invites himself

-marnie shows off her sick bar-tending abilities. makes a mean-ass cocktail. or twelve

-hop gets bitter and challenges bede. bede thinks he means a battle or fist fight. it’s a drinking contest.

-hop and bede get fucking plastered. marnie is an enabler

-as gloria gets more hammered her accent becomes nearly unintelligible. bede reluctantly asks hop to translate and somehow they manage to bond over this

-raihan smokes weed in the bathroom

-there is only one bathroom and gloria is pissed because there ain’t no paparazzi in the fuckin sticks, ya got the whole countryside to light up get the fuck outta there ya pointy toothed bitch ya weren’t even invited

-piers was also smoking weed in the bathroom. gloria badgers him and raihan, calls it “thirdpersonshipping,” and howls for literal hours at her own joke

-bede turns out to be a sloppy drunk. he goes on a rampage roasting everyone except gloria especially gloria

-eventually bede gets upset, thinking he ruined gloria’s party (he didn’t, nobody gives a damn) so she goes to comfort the weepy lil bitch after he dramatically runs off

-gloria takes care of bede when he inevitably starts hurling his guts out

-leon disappeared at some point and no one knows where he went. he is found the next day face-down in a field but he’s alright just hungover

-bede wakes up in gloria’s bed feeling like a trashfire. he only remembers little bits of the night cuz he blacked out after the drinking contest so gloria helps him piece it all together. he’s super embarrassed by his behavior but gloria insists it’s the most fun she’s ever had

[shame-cubed]

i’ve been thinking way too hard about what i wanna do for the fantasy prompt for bederia week. definitely knights, totally wanna draw them as knights. bede’s a fancy ass with a white horse and gloria’s just got a hunting dog and a scrubby ole set of full plate armour. anyway the imagery got my mind spiraling into AU hell instead of sleeping because i’m deranged now apparently

buckle the fuckle up shuckle cuz i’m about to spill the brain juice all over this bitch

- Once upon a time there was a king named Rose and he was beloved by all his subjects for ruling the prosperous land of Galar with world-renowned grace and dignity. his advisor Oleana oversees his court, conducts his every word with a fist of iron and thorns, for Rose only wants the best for his people and certainly knows what he’s doing and couldn’t possibly be wrong ever

- one fateful day the kind King Rose meets a street urchin named Bede while on one of his trips into town to see a jousting competition or some shit, and in some sort of publicity stunt he takes the bread-thieving kid in to live on his vast estate and makes him a squire and trains him for battle, eventually knighting him and everyone praises Rose for his incredible generosity and compassion towards the poor

- no one is more grateful than Bede himself, his loyalty unshakable, although he rarely sees the King. He is just a very busy ruler, using the shreds of his spare time to brood atop some tower in his vast castle away from his subjects. surely it is because he is a Great King with Galar’s future in mind. Some nights Bede wistfully gazes up at the tower as it glows with an odd, beautiful light. He watches the shadow in the window that must be his King and hopes someday Rose will look down from there and shine that light on him, too

- Hop, Marnie, and Gloria were also squires who trained with Bede and became knights but did not live on the estate like he did, they go back to their little towns when they are not on duty. Most of the gym leaders are also Dukes/Duchesses/Lords under Rose who govern their respective patches of land and are high-ranking commander knights as well or whatever. I should probably research this shit. Anyway the highest ranking of them all is Leon. Rose often calls on Leon to do his dirty work, manage his armies etc. 

- Everyone respects Leon very much, except Bede, because while wandering the halls, he overheard Leon and Rose get into a disagreement. Bede thinks it treasonous for Leon to question his King and vows to be better than him and follow Rose’s orders without question. Perhaps Bede was expected to eavesdrop, for he gets his wish, Rose calls for him personally and sends him on a variety of special assignments.

- These special assignments turn out to be rather questionable, but because Bede is such a loyal knight, he enacts his duties no matter what. In the end, it is all for the prosperity of the region and the love of his King. He often runs into the other knights his age while on his missions, and Gloria in particular tells him what he’s doing just ain’t right. He tells her to fuck off and do her job, and she says her duty is to serve the people first and foremost, and Bede’s missions are not doing the people any good. He sneers at her, for his duty is to the King and therefore more important than she could ever imagine.

- Of course this is where shit hits the fan. Leon has assembled a rebel army against Rose because he’s just that charismatic, aiming to expose Rose’s crimes by breaking into his tower where he’s keeping fuck-knows-what. The rebels storm the castle but both Rose and Oleana escape through an underground passageway and his tower is empty because they knew he was coming. It’s Bede who rats Leon out, hearing of his plans through Hop or Marnie or a gym leader idk yet. Gloria and Bede cross swords on the battlefield but can’t bring themselves to kill each other because they share some kind of mutual unspoken respect from their days as squires and don’t know how to deal with it so Bede runs away.

-  Bede tries to escape with Rose and Oleana but turns out the secret passage has been blocked off. He was only ever meant to serve as a tool and a distraction and was promptly left to take the blame and die. He barely gets away from the fighting and drags his bloody body into the nearby woods where he passes the fuck out. Fairies take pity on him and bring him to the old wizard living deep in the heart of the woods. The wizard, who is Opal obviously, heals Bede who tells her his fucked-up tale of betrayal and naivety. While he’s talking, Opal sets out not 2, but 3 teacups and Bede silently wonders if she is insane.

- Cue motherfucking Gloria bustin in on this joint. She’s got a scrap of Bede’s bloody uniform in hand and her hunting dog Zammy has followed the scent, leading her to the wizard’s home. She seems relieved that he isn’t dead and Bede can’t fathom why. He calls her an idiot for caring about him after everything he’s done. Gloria agrees that she is, indeed, an idiot. Soon the idiot is distracted by the fact she is in the presence of the legendary wizard she had been told about in tales as a wee babe. She freaks out a bit, then chugs her tea to calm down.

- Gloria begs Opal to help the rebels, for Rose has gone absolutely mad, he has been dabbling in the dark arts/necromancy in his tower all along and is raising the fucking dead in droves to fight for him. Bede feels sick as he realizes it was probably part of Rose’s plan for him to get killed and become part of his undead army. He reveals that his special missions from Rose were to rob graves, gather strange artifacts, rare flora/fauna, and even some fresh human body parts. This makes Opal hum in wizened consideration. She recognizes these items as ingredients to awaken an ancient and powerful dragon which once brought vast bounties upon the land, a dragon that had been slain long ago by a pair of foolhardy princes with bad hair and would no doubt be quite angered to be disturbed from its eternal rest.

-  Opal agrees to help, for it would be a shame to watch Galar crumble to ruins. She divines Rose’s location and Gloria decides she needs to tell Leon immediately. Opal shows her the secret shortcut out of the woods and Bede tells her where his horse is hitched so she can get to the rebels faster. Gloria thanks them both and leaves her dog with Bede, telling him how to command Zammy if he needs to find her. Bede says she’s wasting time, insists he already knows how to deal with a damn dog, and yells that she better not dirty his horse as she leaves. Opal can’t believe they’re still bickering over stupid shit while the region's at stake and turns to her spellbooks. There’s a way to calm the beast in one of these dusty old tomes, so Bede better get cracking and help her out instead of staring out into the woods worriedly like a dumbass.

- Gloria gets to Leon who’s still at the castle, undead bodies slain all around him, and tells him where Rose is hiding and about his plan to resurrect a powerful dragon. Leon says he had an idea that Rose was gonna do something crazy like that but didn’t think it was actually possible and that they must make haste to stop him. They gather up the rebels and head the fuck out to confront Rose. Hop is there, always at the ready to back up his bro, and he brings his own hunting dog, Zacian. Together with Marnie and the remaining gym leaders who didn’t get fucked up in battle, they lead the charge to Rose’s secret hideout, which is the tomb of the dragon in a deep-ass crater on a mountain.

- Leon’s horse is named Charizard

- The rebels arrive and cut through the undead armies protecting the tomb. Oleana tries to stall them, and fails, but she escapes last minute to tell Rose of their arrival. Rose chides her for not being stronger, but it’s all well, for the dragon has been awakened at last. Finally the steel castles of heights beyond imagination, the vast towns of everlasting glittering lights, all these great wonders of his design which have been appearing in his dreams for many a night will be realized! This is his moment, where he will bring Galar into a shining new era advanced unlike the world has ever seen! He laughs jovially as if he had not just brought about hundreds, maybe thousands, of deaths in his pursuit of this grand future. Sickly red light pours out of his hands and fractures the earth. Debris is flying fucking everywhere as a scaly, skeletal mass of rotten flesh rises from below, bellows and shrieks in horrible pain.

- Leon and friends arrive, there’s a big scuffle with Oleana and some undead gym leaders, Gloria takes a nasty fucking hit when shockwaves from the dragon send her sword and shield flying out of her hands and an undead fuck stabs her in some weak point of her armour, unmistakably hitting some vital organs, she crumples to the ground but tries to get up anyway cuz she’s a hardy bitch. Hop notices and is pissed, calls for Zacian to protect her, and the dog brings her the discarded sword and starts snapping viciously at anyone who approaches.

- Opal, Bede, and Zammy arrive outside of the tomb in a blast of unnecessarily sparkly pink magic. Bede protects Opal as they make their way inside to join the rebels, for the wizard needs to save her strength if she’s about to subdue some ancient undead beast. Spotting Gloria hunched over coughing up blood, Bede loses it and cleans the fuck up, dispatching every undead bitch in sight-- he even manages to wound Oleana, who scrambles away to hide. Once he’s certain Opal will be fine, Bede runs over to Gloria’s side with Zammy in tow and tells her she’s stupid. Zacian growls at first but after seeing Zammy, it backs off to join its sibling alongside Hop as the non-wounded survivors regroup to close in on Rose.

- Gloria had dug her sword into the ground to keep herself upright, but as another blast of energy washes over the battlefield she loses her grip and Bede catches her. She smiles up at him because she didn’t think he cared. He cradles her in his arms, shielding her with his body and admits he couldn’t not care, she’s the only one who stuck by him even when he felt he didn’t deserve it. She confesses she loves him, and the poor guy breaks cuz no-one’s ever said that to him before. He leans down for a kiss, and apparently some of Opal’s healing magic is still in him, because their lip-lock somehow manages to heal Gloria’s injuries. I don’t care if it’s dumb I’m so weak for this shit... 

- While Rose is busy trying to control the increasingly unhinged dragon, Leon fucking stabs him in the back. Rose tries to ramble a bit with his dying breath but everyone’s just like Shut The Fuck Up. All the summoned undead fall apart, save for the giant dragon. Oleana comes out from behind her rock, freaks out, calls Leon a fool, because now there’s no way they can stop the beast from wreaking havoc without Rose’s dark magic. Opal saunters in all like, really now? And starts chanting some weird spell and sprinkling herbs everywhere or something. Magic bullshit. The dragon tries to resist the weird pulses coming from this elderly wizard bitch, and hovers low to the ground to slash at the rebels protecting her.

- Bede and Gloria finish making out and get up to join the fight. Everyone is attacking the dragon to keep it at bay, even the dogs, so Opal can pull off her fancy spell. Eventually a final flash of light appears in a blinding pulse outwards from the legendary wizard, and all the red magic holding together the pile of bones that is the undead dragon crackles and disintegrates. The skeleton crashes to the ground and dust flies everywhere, everyone looks around, all like, is it really over? They smile and celebrate when they realize, yes, the skeleton war is in fact over. 

- Opal is not looking well after using all her power like that, Bede rushes over to help her up and she pats his shoulder, saying he’s got the potential for magic in him. He’s like, what, no way, but Opal just nods all like I saw that fucking healing kiss, you’re a wizard, bitch. She grips him tightly, pours the remainder of her powers into him, and disappears into thin air. RIP.

- Leon becomes king, repairs Galar with the help of his trusted knights, Oleana goes into the dungeon to repent, Bede and Gloria get married (it’s fancy af, the dogs are flower girls) and everyone who isn’t dead lives happily ever after. The end.

WHEW, obviously I don’t have the time to flesh this out any more than what I have here, maybe in a couple months. I got too many irons in the fire rn, I just had to get this shit out of my head or it would haunt me forever. Perhaps I can finally sleep uaaagh

[shame-cubed]

there. i’ve done it.

bye

[shame-cubed]

True Bliss

(Funky music)

Children, defenceless

Violence, senseless

The common consensus?

Build us more fences

I’m whining for timing, (yo)

Rhyming for fine things (no)

This life is confining, (so?)

Like living is dying (woe)

I wish I knew

I wish I knew

everything and

nothing, too

I wish I knew how to be a decent human being

Am I doing better than the people I’ve been seeing?

Even so I always sorta feel like fucking screaming

Day dreams bleeding, nightmares proceeding

Day dreams bleeding

Into the night

Fading

Things are looking up but I’m lying on my back

Sure, it’s dramatic, I’m just programmed to panic

Attack the fact that my brain can’t wrap

Around the world’s powers’ lack of tact

Lawfully slaughtered brothers and daughters

Trampled beneath, as swines did seek

Tainted black blood from the stones of the weak

I wish I knew

I wish I knew

Everything and

nothing, too

Nothing, nothing, nothing

I wish, I wish

I knew, I knew

Nothing, nothing, nothing

I wish, I wish

I wish for true bliss

For true bliss

Is nothingness

[shame-cubed]

Uhhh this is a quick drabble I wrote at 3am half drunk. Edited at work on 3hrs of sleep. Sober, I dunno how I feel about it, it’s not my usual style, really. Context: it’s an angsty edition of an old comic I made many years ago that was anything but. Set in Sinnoh with references to the nuzlocke-challenge (the contract, the lightly mentioned deaths) and also Giratina gets a line

---

Two kindred souls, twin leaves on budding branches, spring forth. 

"Let's go on an adventure together!"

Simpler times bearing simpler sentiments. Hands held fast in forbidden grasses, they find Pandora’s box in a forgotten suitcase, unlocked to newfound friendships and novel ambitions in both consequence and compensation. 

---

You can never predict your final goodbyes. Though, consider it a bitter blessing, should you get the chance to say them at all. 

"Why'd you leave me behind?"

He had something he wanted, someone to prove to. An idol and a towering dream at the end of an ever-winding path of which he would sprint to the top of. She only had him. Then, perhaps in her pursuit of a commonality; a strange, sadistic, contract. Soon, the sickly ink would stain, but she hadn't known that at the time. He didn't stop to warn her.

"You left me, again."

Those words seemed to reiterate each time they met. It wasn't just a choice, he explained, it was a promise to himself. This was more important, right now; his chance to earn what he was owed. They could recoup later, after he fought for his pride and claimed his place as the rightful sun in that wide summer sky. She was welcome to follow, she just had to keep up. 

Instead, she took her time, eyes forever on his back. Every pointed gaze in his direction twice as cutting than the last. She had changed while he was turned around. 

---

All said and done, she was hollowed and adorned with meaningless ribbons. Searching paths long trodden for footprints of a time before it all began--she found something new, something ancient.

She'd heard a whisper of a place unseen. Another patch of grass, another Pokemon, another purpose. Brushed her fingers over a worn sign with rusted hinges and traced the faded letters: Send-off Spring. 

A mumbled prayer to those beyond the ripples of this extant plane. A blackening reflection. A crumpled photograph, like a rotten leaf, sinking to the unseen bottom of a well simultaneously natural yet otherworldly. A voice of the same description emanating from below and possibly beyond.

"I can bring them back, all of them. Even him. Simply step into my spring, for it is the gateway dividing life and death, time and space, where all can be and not be, at once."

With winnings shadowed by her losses; willingly, she plunged into purgatory.

---

Farewells, unsaid, will never be heard. There are no reunions with cold fingers and stiff bodies and lifeless eyes. Only sealed lips, too-quick steps, and backwards glances stolen too late.

A gaze turned down through the glass atop the tower whose throne he coveted so much. He never had to prove anything, for it was his to be inherited all along. The friend and smile he thought he’d always know, now lost in the dust he left; no more memories to be made, nor adventures to be had. His father pats his shoulder, gives him worried looks, as the missing posters of a new champion are placed in every corner. 

Crinkled foliage spills around him in slow motion, cracks and crumbles beneath a pace no longer hurried. It’s winter within his ribs and behind his stare. He had been left behind.